


I Hadn't Planned on You

by wordshakers



Category: Dead Poets Society (1989)
Genre: College AU, Fluff, Gay, M/M, Modern AU, Romance, anderperry, au yeah august, but dont worry we'll get there, this one is going to be kind of a slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-06-24 05:38:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15623745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wordshakers/pseuds/wordshakers
Summary: Neil Perry is a sophomore in college, just trying to get his bachelor's degree in drama without getting disowned by his parents. Then he accidentally ends up falling for the boy who stumbled into poetry class late on the first day.Inspired by Day 2 of AU Yeah AUgust (a little late), but will be more than just a oneshot. Anderperry, College AU, Modern AU.





	I Hadn't Planned on You

**Author's Note:**

> So first of all I feel like I should apologize- I'm a week late with Day 2 of AU Yeah August, but this one just kept telling me to keep writing. This is going to be a multi-chapter fic, so I hope you can forgive me knowing that! As always, thanks so much to deathbysandblk for being my editor, guest reader, and friend.

It was a surprisingly warm afternoon in early September. Neil savored the way the sunlight hit his face as he walked briskly across campus. As much as he’d rather be sitting on the quad preparing for fall play auditions, which were just around the corner, this was his final class of the day, and he’d still have time to start memorizing his monologue afterwards. Besides, this class was an elective, and part of him was honestly looking forward to it, as much as he knew his roommate Charlie would tease him about it. He didn’t mind. That was just Charlie. 

It was the beginning of his second year in college, and he had never been happier. He adored everything about his school, his new friends, and his life, even considering the relationship he had with his parents, which had gone from bad to worse ever since he chose his university.

Neil’s parents had been furious when he went against their wishes and chose a liberal arts university over medical school. He could still hear his father’s rage in the back of his mind. “No son of mine is going to be a goddamn  _ drama major! _ ” he had screamed at Neil, spitting out the last two words as if they were poisonous. “Father, I don’t want to be a doctor, I’ve never wanted to be a doctor,” Neil had tried to explain, but he had been cut off by a slap across the face by his father, which made his mother scream. “You’re going to medical school or you are no son of mine,” his father had said, simmering with anger. Neil’s cheek stung with pain, and for a moment he had felt tears welling in his eyes. Instead of crying, however, something deep inside Neil had possessed him to stand up, look his father directly in the eyes, and say, “Then I guess I’m not your son.” Neil could hardly believe the words had just come out of his mouth, if it wasn’t for the look on his father’s face. It was the first time Neil had ever seen him completely speechless. That night, he had packed his things and moved out, with his father and mother glaring at him, not saying a word.

He had lived with his high school friend Charlie for the whole summer. They had been close since they were children, and they had committed to the same university. It only made sense that they should be roommates, and it had worked out so well freshman year that they decided to keep it up for another. Since the initial falling out, Neil’s parents had softened, but barely. They still refused to pay for his schooling, but at least he hadn’t been disowned. Neil still hadn’t dared to tell them that he was gay. That might have actually sealed the deal.

He made it to class just in time, taking a seat near the back of the packed lecture hall. It was one of the only seats left, and the only one with an empty seat left next to it. Neil figured it would be easier to only sit near one stranger on the first day. 

The professor introduced himself and began to go over the syllabus, and Neil found his mind wandering to his upcoming audition. He hadn’t had a chance to go over his monologue yet, and he only had another week to prepare. True, he had gotten a decent part in last year’s  _ Twelfth Night _ , but this year the show was  _ Hamlet _ , and he wanted nothing more than to play he lead.  _ This hall is packed _ , he thought to himself, _ and we’re still going over the syllabus. I’m sure nobody will notice if I just start looking this monologue over… _ He was just reaching into his bag when a knock on the door distracted him.

The professor paused his lecture and looked over at the closed door to the hall. Sighing, he walked over to the door and opened it for an incredibly flustered boy, seemingly out of breath, who began to profusely apologize for his lateness. 

“Don’t apologize, Mr…” “A-Anderson. Todd. Um, Todd Anderson.” “Mr. Anderson. I’ll let you off the hook this time, but you might want to pay close attention to my lateness policy in the syllabus.” “Yes, sir. Thank you.” Todd, face red from both embarrassment and his apparent run to class, began to make his way towards the back of the lecture hall. Neil looked at him curiously as he got closer. He was slim, almost as tall as Neil, with dark blonde hair and a face that Neil could only describe as… well…  _ beautiful.  _ His heart skipped a beat when Todd walked down his aisle and sat down in the empty seat to his right.

The lesson continued on from there, but it became increasingly hard for Neil to focus with such a distraction sitting so close to him. He kept catching himself stealing glances to his right, so much so that he missed nearly all of the syllabus.  _ God, he’s gorgeous,  _ Neil thought, practically in awe.  _ I need to strike up a conversation, but how?  _ He had no idea how to talk to guys. He had gone on a few dates freshman year, but none of them had really gone anywhere. Hell, if anyone knew how to snag a date, it wasn’t him, it was Charlie.  _ Charlie! _ Now that was an idea. Charlie would know exactly what to do. Discreetly, Neil pulled his phone out of his pocket, and sent a text to his roomate.  _ charlie sos there is an EXTREMELY cute guy sitting right next to me what do i do _

Barely 30 seconds had passed when Neil felt his phone buzz against his leg. Charlie had replied ridiculously quickly.  _ holy shit!! just make a joke about how boring the lecture was or smthn idk but u better get his number or im never shutting up about it _

Neil smiled. He wasn’t sure if that was the best tactic, but Charlie was onto something. He sent a quick reply:  _ lmao thanks slick ill do my best,  _ and then spent the rest of the class planning out what he was going to say, interspersed with glances at the blonde boy next to him and butterflies exploding in his stomach.

At the end of the lecture, Todd grabbed his bag and started to walk away as quickly as possible before Neil even had time to say anything.  _ Shit! _ he thought, thinking he had missed his chance for the day, when he suddenly noticed a composition notebook sitting on the floor where the boy’s bag had been, the cover blank save the initials T.A. Todd Anderson. Neil grabbed the book, and began to chase after the boy. “Hey, wait! You forgot something!” he called, jogging outside into the late afternoon sun.

For a moment, Neil thought he had lost him, but then he noticed a familiar silhouette walking briskly towards one of the residence halls. Neil ran towards him, and at the sound of his footsteps, Todd turned around, seemingly taken aback. Todd’s blue eyes fixated on him, and Neil’s heart skipped a beat.

“You… you forgot this,” Neil said, holding up the notebook and trying to catch his breath. Todd’s mouth opened slightly in surprise. “Oh. Oh, wow, thanks.” He took the notebook from Neil, and then looked back up at him, curious. “You ran after me?”

“I guess that’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?” Neil laughed, breathing hard. “I just noticed you left pretty quick, and I wanted to make sure you got it back.”

Todd looked a little stunned. “I… I really appreciate it,” he said gently, clutching the book to his chest. “Would’ve been kinda rough having to go back for it after showing up late.”

“I was almost late myself,” admitted Neil, finally regaining his composure while trying to push back thoughts of how goddamn  _ pretty _ this boy’s eyes were. “I’m Neil Perry,” he added, realizing he hadn’t introduced himself yet. 

Todd smiled at him, shifting his feet. “Todd Anderson, but I guess you already knew that after what happened in class.”

“Are you also a sophomore? I haven’t seen you around.” Neil asked, his heart feeling as if it were about to burst from his chest.

“Yeah, I’m a transfer student though.” Todd explained, looking shyly at the ground, which was absolutely  _ adorable _ . “Creative writing major.”

“You write? Wow, that’s really cool. What do you write about?”

“Um, I write poems, mostly. I really like the Romantics.”

Neil was becoming acutely aware of how fast his infatuation for this boy was growing. He decided now was as good a time as any to make his move.

“Hey, so, they say it’s a good idea to have a friend in every class. Do you want to exchange numbers? It has nothing to do with you already being a poem expert or anything.” Neil said with a cheeky grin, trying his best to hide the fact that his heart was beating a million times a minute.

“Oh- um- yeah, sure.” Todd said.  _ Was he blushing? _ Neil could have sworn Todd’s cheeks were pinker than they had been a minute earlier, but it could have just been the light. They exchanged numbers and said their goodbyes, and Neil felt both giddy and light as a feather.

Practically walking on air back to his dormitory, Neil came to the conclusion that his monologue could wait. There were much more important things that needed addressing. Namely, that it was his second day back at school and he had already gotten the number of a ridiculously gorgeous poet who happened to sit next to him in class.

This was shaping up to be one hell of a year.


End file.
